Man Sues Quaker Oats For Using Glyphosate On Their Oats

A man from Brooklyn, New York has filed a $5 million lawsuit against Quaker Oats for using glyphosate on their oats and claiming the product is 100% natural:

Quaker Oats is being sued for $5million by a man who claims they use a dangerous weed killer during production.

Lewis Daly from Brooklyn, New York, has filed a lawsuit against the company, saying their advertising is ‘false, deceptive and misleading’.

He says the carcinogenic substance, glyphosate, is used to grow the oats and is sprayed on them during harvest.

Glyphosate is a widely used herbicide which the World Health Organization declared as ‘probably carcinogenic to humans’ in 2015. It has been linked to a number of cancers, including breast, thyroid, kidney, pancreas, liver, bladder and myeloid leukaemia.

As well as using the chemical as a weedkiller in growing the oats, more ‘is sprayed on the oats as a drying agent shortly before harvest,’ claims Daly in his Brooklyn federal court lawsuit.

What do you think? Will it go anywhere?

Two weaknesses in his suit are: 1. There is no accepted standard for the word “natural.” 2. A “probable carcinogen” is not a definite carcinogen. I imagine there will be lots of numbers brought up … how much is sprayed on, how much makes it to the final product, how much the EPA says is a problem.

Here’s something I keep saying. I was surprised to read it, in the Daily mail no less:

Glyphosate and its analogs are known endocrine disrupters for humans.

That’s the problem! People will argue until the cows come home how much glyphosate it takes to produce cancer. But it takes a lot less to disrupt our metabolism. And we’re bombarded with endocrine disruptors … food, hygiene products, cleansers. It’s the cumulative amount from many sources that no one is studying. And it’s the chronic exposure, over years.

Will the suit go anywhere? I don’t think the suit is about the money or winning. That could take years and years to come to a final resolution. It could be thrown out eventually over the points made in your blog.

I think the suit was filed to give Quaker Oats and glyphosate bad PR. If the lawsuit can get enough publicity, stays around long enough and gains a high enough profile, the suit could accomplish the goal of reducing or restricting glyphosate use without having to win in court. I think is was really filed in the court of public opinion.